Introduction. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) estimate that between 1 039 000 and 1 185 000 people in the USA are infected with HIV, and approximately 75% are aware of their infection and 25% are not.
February 18, 2010 â Editor's note: Pediatric respiratory emergencies result from a variety of causes, including chronic medical conditions, infections, allergic reactions, and obstruction from foreign bodies.
Infant respiratory distress syndrome is caused by the absence of a natural lung wetting agent (surfactant) in the immature lungs of infants. Since surfactant normally develops late in prenatal life it usually is not present in the very premature infant of about 26-36 weeks of gestational age.